Nothing between the teams says Shane Quinn as Mohill look for an edge in replay

Mohill need to exert more control in next Saturday’s Connacht Gold Leitrim SFC Final replay if they are to retain the Fenagh Cup. That’s the thoughts of their captain Shane Quinn after an enthralling drawn encounter which didn’t surprise the veteran playmaker one little bit.

“I was talking about it all week, different people, people at work and people outside the town, you try and look for where's the edge,” Shane told the Observer when asked how just how close the battles between Mohill and Ballinamore usually are, “You know, there's nothing between the teams. 

“Maybe, some are saying, if you took it out of Ballinamore, it would be a different story, but it wouldn't be - it would be the same edgy game, it would be the same tit for tat. I think we were beaten four or five times there in that game, we only led only the once so there was no winner coming out of it.

“You have Beirne, Jordan, Squidgy, they have the two Morans, Honeyman, Prior, Wayne McKeon, Ferguson there - we just have to go and see where we can actually get ahead of them by a bit more, control the game.”

Looking back on the concession of the game’s only goal, Shane gives some insight into how Mohill approach these set-backs: “The goal was a bad mistake at the start of the game but as Eamonn said, if you're going to concede a goal in a county final, you're as well to concede it early because you can build back, and we did build back.

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“That's a sign of the mindset of that team - we're still champions as it stands. We have another week of work, another game. We've done it before in 2015. The first game against Manor was a great game and the second game was dire. Chick got a goal on the last kick of the game. 

“We don't care how the game is played, once we come out the right side of it, there's nothing new to us. We've had a couple of replays here and there, an extra time - look, we'll be ready when the day comes.”

Indeed, the Mohill captain admitted he was relieved the game didn’t go to extra-time: “I was happy enough now. I was shaking Paul Moran’s hand and he wouldn't look at me so I gave him a little push to say, come on, a bit of sportsmanship, and he's like ‘there’s extra time, Quinny’ and I was like ‘all right, sorry’.

“Then they said there wasn’t so I was like, all right now shake my hand,” said Shane, recalling the confusion on the field after the final whistle before adding “Extra time, it's body over mind if it goes to extra time. You just have to try to be mentally strong going into it. Thankfully it didn't come, and it's hard to know what way it would have gone.”

The immediate worry at the full-time whistle for Mohill fans was how was Shane’s knee but he quelled any fears: “It was just bone to bone there with Moran there, Moran is probably just a bit more muscly than I am. It's just a stinger now. When I landed first, I thought that was it now, ‘night, night’ but no, it was just a bad bang. It's sore now, but it'll be alright.”